Friday, May 30, 2008

Border Wall Vigil Sunday at Alice Wilson Memorial Park

Full-scale construction of the new border fencing has begun in San Diego/Tijuana, and is scheduled to begin in Hidalgo this July.

In response, a coalition of community-based organizations will hold a vigil at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Alice Wilson Memorial Park formerly known as Hope Park.

Vigils will also be held at Friendship Park in San Diego and Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park.

The vigil is called "From Friendship To Hope – Gathering for the Future of the U.S.-Mexico Border." These "Friendship to Hope" gatherings at either end of the 1900-mile border will serve as the vigils' symbolic anchors.

For more information, call Adrienne Evans at (432) 371-2725. The Coalition of Amigos in Solidarity & Action (CASA) is sponsoring the Brownsville vigil. Hope Park is located at E. 12th St. and E. St. Charles St.

An August 18, 2007 Rasmussen Reports poll reported that polled Americans favored building a fence along the U.S. border with Mexico, by a margin of 56 percent in favor and 31 percent against. The poll found that among those who identified themselves as Republicans 75 percent supported building a fence along the border.

56% would be a majority. It is old by poll standards, but that does not mean it isn't still the case or has grown.

Through extrapulation of numbers, if 75% of 56% is republican, that could mean that up to 25% of 56% of Democrats support it. Meaning, 14% of Democrats support the wall. And 42% of Republicans support the wall.

Having been a resident of that crumbling figment of civilization called Brownsville, then having moved away from the isolated border area, it is glaringly―as in so apparent it cannot be confused with anything else―obvious that the outdated, nineteenth century notions you harbor about a so-called border culture that existed to ensure citizens of the United States had an inexpensive playground and certain industries had an ongoing source of near literal slave labor no longer mesh with the realities of the world as it exists today.

Very simply, what you think the issues are, do NOT reflect how the majority of citizens of the United States feel about this issue. The notions you cling to to support your prejudices elicit a resounding "What the hell?" from people who do not live on the border.

Does personal experience count as sourcing it? Does reality count as sourcing it? You have no idea what the rest of the country feels about this. Source that.